Algonquin-LITH Fire District Tax Hike Referendum Meant to Address Declining Revenue

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL - Residents living in the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District will be asked Tuesday to vote on a tax to help cover declining revenue.

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If the tax hike is passed, residents living in the district will pay an additional tax of .10% of the equalized assessed value on their property. That amounts to about $65 more per year for the owner of a $200,000 home, according to the fire district.

In total, the tax would bring in an estimated $900,000 more each year for the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District, according to the Daily Herald. That money would be used to support emergency and rescue crews and purchase new equipment.

The increase, the first the fire district has requested since 1997 when it began offering full-time ambulance service, is meant to address declining revenue from a variety of areas.

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One of the biggest drops in revenue for the district came when the federal government decided to no longer allow the fire district to own and operate a radio frequency fire alarm monitoring system, according to fire officials. In 2013, the fire district brought in $407,000 by providing radio frequency alarms to commercial property in the district, according to the Northwest Herald.

Another big cost for the fire protection district has come from the addition of the Affordable Care Act, which now requires the fire district to provide part-time firefighters with paid health insurance, according to the fire protection district. This change costs the fire district an estimated $200,000, the Northwest Herald reports. Declining property values and an increase in the cost for workers' compensation insurance have also contributed to less money in the fire district's coffers, according to the fire district.

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To try and balance its budget, the fire district has reduced staff, cutting administrative positions by 40 percent and reducing the number of on-duty rescue personnel from 18 to 15, according to the fire district.

The Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District covers 24 square miles and operates three rescue stations. Firefighters and rescue crews respond to over 3,700 emergency calls each year.

Here is a look at the full referendum as it will appear on Tuesday's ballot:

PROPOSITION TO CREATE A NEW TAX RATE FOR EMERGENCY AND RESCUE FUND PURPOSES

Shall the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District, Kane and McHenry Counties, Illinois, be authorized to levy a new tax for emergency and rescue crews and equipment purposes and have an additional tax of .10% of the equalized assessed value of the taxable property therein extended for such purposes?

To find your polling place, visit the Illinois State Board of Elections website.

More via the Northwest Herald and the Algonquin Lake in the Hills Fire Protection website.